“Yup, meet Mr. International
On the runway more than a fashion show, y’know?”
– Talib Kweli on “Mr. International“
Sometimes it’s really healthy to get away from it all for a little bit. Whether it’s a week, a day, or even an hour, your mind functions better if it can break away from everything for awhile. I read that your brain doesn’t function as well without breaks and it’s good to “recharge.” Especially if you’re in a position of stress or if a lot of people need you for something, “escaping” for a little while helps put things into perspective…at least it does for me. It gives me time to reflect, to absorb, and more importantly, to breathe! Well, October was definitely one of those kinda months and I got my breather.
Whatup my peoples? What’s poppinnnnn??? Welcome one and welcome all to the Ajaxxx.com November 2013 Opinions Column. Did you just say November? Whoa, how is it already month 11? I guess time flies when you’re having fun. If you’re new to the site, this is the place where I talk about anything and everything going on…ranging from music to movies to just about anything else. If you’re returning to the site, welcome back! Glad to see you again. Andddddd with that said, let’s talk about October.
So I went to Switzerland. Yup, I actually traveled to Europe this past month and it was amazing. If I do any traveling, it’s either within the US…or the Asia trips which I’ve done a couple of recently. But as far as Europe goes, I haven’t been there since I was a kid…and I’ve been thinking about traveling there for awhile (confession: I really wanna go to the UK, but Switzerland will suffice lol). So yes, back to my trip. I spent more than a week there where I did all sorts of things. I traveled to a mountain, visited a castle, and took a boat out to a waterfall. I met people, ate new foods, and experienced a very different culture. It was eye opening and surreal at the same time. AND THE SIGHTS. Honestly, Switzerland has some of the most gorgeous, breathtaking scenery you’ll ever see. There were a few times during my trip where I was tripping out at how perfect some things looked. I mean, I felt like I was in a painting. Despite all the pictures I took too, nothing will capture the feeling I got of being surrounded by the enormity of the sights and the splendor that the city gave me. It was absolutely incredible and something I’ll take with me forever.
Here are some pics from my trip:
More than anything, the trip gave me a new global perspective and reminded me of a lot of important things. Last year when I went to Singapore, I wrote about it and what it taught me. Europe was similiar…it reminded me to count my blessings and be grateful for the life I have. I mean c’mon, some people don’t even have a passport and here I am traveling nine hours abroad to see some of the most wow kinda stuff. I had to tell myself again and again that I’m blessed. Whether it was looking over the world from the top of the snow-filled mountain, taking in a serene lake in Zurich overlooking swans, or sitting in a cafe in Lichtenstein eating an apple strudel and listening to “Man in the Mirror”, I experienced a lot. (And with the Michael Jackson moment, no lie, when that song came on the first thing I told myself was “this is life.”) LoL it was unreal how great it went and I’m lucky to have gone there. What a world we live in.
Being overseas and seeing the enormity of things (I used that word again) showed me just how small and trivial some of my problems are. I don’t know what’s wrong with me, but sometimes I worry about things that don’t deserve the attention. I’m working on it and hopefully I’m getting better at it…but yeah, it’ll take some time.
Some other things I wanted to talk about:
The Man with the Plan
I mentioned this in several Opinions Columns prior, but since moving I haven’t had a real great opp to record. I HAVE recorded, but nothing crazy or in-depth. Somewhere in October (and I’m not sure when), I woke up and told myself I need to develop a plan to get this music thing poppin off again. And that’s what I’m doing. I’m still waiting on the music video for “One of a Kind” to come out, but I can’t let that hold me back. I have to be productive in other areas of my life til that happens. So here’s to a plan. Not like I didn’t have one before, but I made some adjustments for my life today.
Eminem single
Em recently dropped a new single called “The Monster” with Rihanna. My thoughts? It’s pretty dope. While it’s pretty different than some of his other songs, it shows a growth and evolution that I’m all about. The song IS good. With an introspective message and a catchy Rihanna hook, I can’t see why people hate. I mean, the lyrics are still there…it’s the flow that’s changed more than anything. The “he’s not Slim Shady anymore” argument is weak…it’s been over ten years since he dropped the Slim Shady LP. Now I will admit, the rest of the singles so far haven’t impressed me THAT much (they’re good songs but not great) but this feels a lot better. “Rap God” was probably the best but it still lacked the concept I wanted to hear. I haven’t peeped the MMLP2 album yet just because I’m waiting for next week, but I’ll be back in December with a full review on it. I’m looking forward to it though.
Embracing Change
Something I always struggle with is how to embrace change. I get really accustomed to things really fast, so when things just up and change it really messes with me. I don’t know why that is. Whenever someone moves or something, you always say “oh yea, let’s keep in touch” and more recently “yea, let’s Facebook each other.” In reality though, once you stop seeing people in real life, you grow apart. It’s just difficult to maintain that relationship when people move away. The other day I heard this really good quote that kinda helped me with it: “When something ends, it just means something better is coming.” I definitely needed to hear that especially since there’s so much uncertainty in life right now. But yeah, gotta keep those positive vibes.
And that’ll do it for me. Thanks for reading my peeps! Stay up, stay safe, and hold ya head! Ajaxxx signing out…PEACEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
